Checkmate, My Lord (26 page)

A heavy blanket of dread bore down on her as she reached for the scrap of paper. Unfolding the note, she read the neat but hastily written message. By the time she reached the end, the words were hidden behind a veil of tears and the pressure around her chest threatened to suffocate her.

“Sebastian.”

***

Catherine peered down at the anonymous letter again, her tears making the feminine handwriting blurry and incomprehensible. She stared at the author’s name.
Cora-belle
.

Cora. Lord Somerton’s ward, or rather former ward. She was here. And sometime during the festivities, she had invaded Catherine’s private quarters and used her personal stock of paper to write a devastating letter.

My dear Mrs. Ashcroft,

I risk discovery to bring you the truth about Lord Somerton’s care of my brother Ethan and myself. Not only did the earl offer shelter to two grief-stricken orphans, who were no relation to him, he gave us a home, one complete with all the comforts a child could want and all the parental devotion a child might need.

Never once in all the years I lived beneath his guardianship did I doubt his love for me. There are many ways to love another, and all do not require a confession of emotion. Love is in the heart, and I see it shining in his for you.

If you feel the same, which I believe you do, seize this moment. He will never give you a day where you doubt his affection, for his is the truest of hearts.

Warmly, and your new admirer,

Cora-belle

PS—Lord Somerton can at times be rather mulish in his protection of those he loves. Sometimes that noble quality can lead to sacrificial decisions. If you need suggestions on how best to knock some sense into him, I am at your service.

With trembling fingers, Catherine set Cora’s note down and wondered how her life had become so complicated so fast. Her love for Sebastian grew with every encounter, and not even his alleged involvement in Jeffrey’s death had stopped her from plunging in over her head. How had she managed to attach her affections to a man even more obsessed with his cause than either her father or her husband?

A low knock sounded, and Catherine stiffened. She hastily wiped her eyes and tucked the missive away. At the door, she asked, “Yes?”

“May I come in, daughter?”

Catherine patted her cheeks and hair and ran her hands down the front of her dress before unlocking the door. Brown eyes, not dissimilar from Catherine’s own, rounded at the sight of her daughter’s ravaged face. Her mother rushed forward, slamming the door closed behind her and enfolding Catherine in her arms.

“Oh, daughter,” her mother whispered. “All will be set to rights.”

The warmth, the security, and the familiar scent of gardenias in her mother’s embrace propelled Catherine back to her adolescence. The traitorous tears came faster. “It’s too much.”

“No, it’s not.” Her mother clasped her tighter. “You have a strong spirit, one that will see you through this and many more challenges in the years to come. Do not give in to the fear. Sup from it, draw strength from it. Then vanquish it.”

Catherine pulled away, swiping at her face. “Silas admitted to attacking Lord Somerton and killing Meghan McCarthy.”

“Dear God.”

“There’s so much at stake, Mother. One wrong word or one erroneous act, and I could lose my mother and daughter and the man I—” The damning words stuck to the back of her throat.

Keen-witted woman that she was, her mother offered, “The man you love?”

Closing her eyes, Catherine fought back a wave of shame. “Caught in my own tangled web.” She drew in a deep breath and stepped away as an unaccountable chill settled in her bones.

“Do not be so harsh on yourself, daughter,” her mother admonished. “Given the circumstances, you were left with few choices. As for you falling in love with his lordship,” she propped her hands on her hips, “many a male neighbor and traveler has tried to seduce you into their beds over the last few years, with no success. So I suspect there’s something rather special about Lord Somerton, or you would have sent him to the devil with all the rest.”

Using her fingertips, Catherine placed pressure on each throbbing temple. “For years, I viewed Lord Somerton as a cold, reclusive man with little interest in his country estate.”

“And now?” her mother asked.

“Now, I see that he is everything I was certain he wasn’t.” She thought of his kindnesses toward Sophie, his sense of urgency with the tenants and the various repairs, and his unwavering determination to find Meghan McCarthy. And then there was the way he had ripped away her loneliness with a single, passionate kiss. “Even so,” she wrapped her arms around her middle, “I will never go back to my former half-life. For years, I wondered what horrible thing I had done or hadn’t done to cause Sophie to lose her father. All those worries and recriminations were for nothing. I suffered years of useless guilt. Never again.”

Catherine halted her monologue long enough to draw in a calming breath. “This might sound selfish, but I’m beyond caring. I want a gentleman who will put me—and my daughter—above all else. Someone who will love me and stay by my side, no matter how badly I vex him.”

Her mother’s smile was a mixture of pride and sorrow. “As you should, daughter.”

Catherine did not know how to ease her mother’s past regrets. “Mother, we must all begin anew.” Catherine squeezed her mother’s hand. “Let us put the past to rest.”

Her mother peered down at their joined hands, saying nothing. Then her free hand covered Catherine’s. “Yes,” she said. “Yes, I do believe you’re right.” With her normal fortitude, her mother collected herself. “The seed is planted?”

Nodding, Catherine asked, “Did you pass Silas outside my door?”

“No,” her mother said. “Nor did I see him lingering outside the nursery.”

Silas’s unusual behavior and Mrs. Clarke’s tear-stained face made Catherine uneasy. “I’m so torn. I need to convey Silas’s confession to Lord Somerton, but I also wonder if I should forego visiting him tonight.”

“Why is that, dear?”

“Our unwanted guests appear out of sorts, don’t you think?”

“Not anymore than normal, but I haven’t seen either one since before you left for Bellamere’s stables.” Her mother glanced at the closed door. “If you stay, you take the risk of agitating Silas. He doesn’t seem the type one should provoke.”

Catherine recalled the man’s twitching eye, awful smile, and vile confessions and decided her mother was correct. “I suppose, though my stomach is not happy about it.”

“You can’t be serious, Chief,” Lord Danforth said. “She picked everyone out?”

Sebastian stared into the empty fire grate, not looking up at the small group of Nexus agents assembled in the drawing room. Had he done so, the mixture of irritation and pride alighting his eyes would have confused them all.

“Everyone but you and Bingham, and that’s only because you were both walking the perimeter.” Many years ago, Sebastian had hired Bingham, along with Dinks and Jack, to watch over Cora while she was on assignment in France. Bingham acted the coachman, Jack the footman, and Dinks the lady’s maid. The quartet had become close, each protecting the others like beloved family members.

“No one ever pays attention to servants,” Danforth grumbled.

“I have come to realize Mrs. Ashcroft isn’t like most people.”

His statement was met with a thick fog of silence. He glanced up then and found four pairs of fascinated eyes on him. Danforth looked more appalled. Lord Helsford stared without expression. Cora appeared on the verge of happy tears. And Dinks chortled until she snorted.

“I’m doomed.” Danforth groaned and slumped back in his chair.

Cora sent her brother a sharp look. “What are you nattering on about?”

“If a woman can steal the chief’s heart,” Danforth nodded toward Sebastian, “there is no hope for my continued bachelorhood.”

“Ethan!” Cora scolded.

Sebastian’s muscles coiled into bands of steel. Although Danforth had a tendency to blurt out whatever was on his mind, inappropriately so at times, the man’s instincts tended toward genius. Which, in this particular case, did not bode well for Sebastian. “I assure you, my heart is where it should be.”

He resumed their former discussion. “In addition to identifying each of you, Mrs. Ashcroft noted an unfamiliar tall, black-haired woman. Anyone else notice her?”

Danforth perked up. “Black hair, you say?”

Nodding, Sebastian asked, “What do you know?”

“Nothing for certain.” The viscount’s gaze turned inward. “But that description matches the maid who helped nurse me back to good health.” His brow clenched together. “Except the tall part. That’s not how I would describe her.”

“You were also flat on your back,” Helsford said, “with a concussion and a number of other injuries hampering your judgment.”

“True.”

“Let us set aside the black-haired maid for now,” Sebastian said. “Catherine will be here soon, and I think it best to keep your presence a secret for a while.”

“Are you sure?” Cora asked. “She might like knowing help has arrived.”

“You’re no doubt correct,” Sebastian said. “But she’s not accustomed to prevarication. Ignorance will protect her while interacting with her gaolers.”

Danforth interjected, “What next? Track down Cochran, or wait for him to come to us?”

“Find him,” Sebastian said. “He’s somewhere close. The three of you, go into the village and ask around.”

“Guy and Ethan can interrogate the villagers without me,” Cora said. “I should like to stay here and keep watch.”

“I don’t need you underfoot.”
Or
nosing
into
my
affaire
with
Catherine.

“You won’t even know I’m here.”

He would know, but let the topic go. To Helsford, he said, “You delivered my message to Reeves?”

“I had to leave it with his clerk Bradford. The superintendent is attending a family crisis at the moment. Bradford expected him to return this afternoon.”

“Very well. Report back here tomorrow morning.”

As they began filing out of the drawing room, Sebastian halted Danforth. “Stay in Showbury.”

The younger man’s face hardened. “I learned my lesson well last time, Chief. I will be where you tell me to be.” He strode from the room.

Helsford bent to kiss Cora’s temple. “Don’t do anything foolish—”

She leveled her blue-green eyes on her betrothed, retribution in their depths.

“Until I return,” he finished.

She waved her hand toward the door. “Go play nursemaid to my brother, while the chief and I develop a plan to bring down our enemy.”

A feminine snort sounded from the back of the room.

“Yes, dear.” Helsford winked at the buxom lady’s maid. “Behave.”

Dinks laughed. “I’ll work on it, my lord.” She sobered. “Watch over that hothead for us.”

“You can be sure of it,” Helsford said.

“And that shite-scooping mongrel,” she muttered. “Watch over him, too.”

Helsford shared a look with Cora. “Is that your way of asking me to give Bingham a kiss for you?”

The maid’s face heated. “Bah!” She marched away.

“Do you think they’ll ever declare their feelings for one another?” Helsford asked.

“No,” Cora said, smiling. “They’re having too much fun tormenting each other.”

Helsford nodded, then turned to Sebastian. “I’ll send word of any developments.” After one last long look at Cora, he followed in Danforth’s wake.

A prickle along his neck warned Sebastian that he had become the focus of determined feminine attention. He glanced longingly after the other two men.

“Do you love her?” Cora asked in a soft voice.

Having no intention of answering her question—for he didn’t know the answer—he sent her a withering glare, which she ignored.

“If you do,” she said, “don’t lose her to this cause. One lifetime is not enough.”

She would know. Of all his agents, Cora would be most familiar with that particular sentiment. “In case you have forgotten, she is newly widowed and not in a position, nor I doubt inclined, to accept the suit of another man.” He speared the crystal decanters a glance.

“Then wait for her.”

Sebastian set his jaw, irritated with himself for even engaging in this fruitless conversation. “I have not acted the gentleman with her.”

“Start over,” Cora pressed. “Court her as you would any potential wife.”

Wife
. The word caressed the rough edges of his soul. “We are too far beyond courtship.”

A charged silence followed his statement, and Sebastian saw the two women share a glance.

“There’s nothing for it then, my lord.” Dinks smacked her thigh and marched over to stand in front of the decanters filled with amber temptation. “You must seduce her. To do that, you’re going to need all your wits.”

“You go too far, Dinks.”

She braced her hands on broad hips. “You can give me the boot after you woo your lady. Until then…” The maid widened her stance, and her gaze became even more defiant.

“Dinks is right.” Cora broke into the pair’s visual duel. “Keep Mrs. Ashcroft in bed until she promises you forever. From the looks she was casting your way today, I would say she’s already halfway—if not entirely—in love with you.”

In an uncharacteristic move, Sebastian tunneled his fingers through his hair. “Even if that were true, Cora, she wouldn’t have me.”

“Why on earth would you say such a thing?”

“Because her marriage with Ashcroft was nothing short of disastrous, and any union with me would be ten times worse. Not only that, anyone associated with me becomes a target, or worse, leverage.” He caught her gaze. “As you well know.”

“Dinks,” Cora said, “would you give us a moment?”

“Certainly.” The lady’s maid sent Sebastian a warning glare before hastening from the room.

“She does understand that I pay her wages, right?” Sebastian asked.

“She’s worried about you. As am I.”

“There’s no need.” He moved to the opposite side of the room from the brandy.

“More than likely, our enemy has already discerned your affection for Mrs. Ashcroft. There is no safer place for her than by your side.”

“Where did you learn to be so ruthless?”

“I was mentored by the very best.”

He sighed. “Let us focus our attention on how we will keep the Ashcroft ladies safe until this is all over, shall we?”

“What will you do?” she asked. “When it’s over?”

“Return to London.”

“And what of Mrs. Ashcroft?”

Her intrusive questions made him think about things he had no wish to think about. Catherine and he had an agreement to end their
affaire
once he returned to the city. Nothing had changed to alter their plans. Nothing. “I suspect she will continue on as before.” His stomach cramped into a tight ball.

“Have you never considered giving up the Nexus?” she asked.

Every
day
since
returning
to
Bellamere
. “Why would I surrender my only sense of purpose?”

“You don’t mean that.”

“Why wouldn’t I?” The words emerged harsh. “I have no other interests, no hobbies or expensive peccadillos. I live, eat, breathe, sleep this fight against Napoleon’s domination. Someone with my specialized talents is of little use anywhere else.”

“I disagree, sir,” Cora said, rising. “For I have always known you were meant to be more than a mentor or guardian or even a chief of the Nexus.” She gazed upon him with gentle, loving eyes. “You were meant to be a father and a husband.”